[Jared Russell]

I think that we will see a LOT less autonomous robot scoring than this poll would suggest.

1. Shooting from a moving robot into a moving goal is a HARD problem to solve. It is doable, but expect to spend a lot of time solving this challenge that may have been better spent elsewhere. Many teams will want to sit still as they shoot, making them an easy target for human players.

2. There is no bonus for scoring in autonomous mode versus teleop. Your driver will almost certainly be a better shot (with whatever targeting software you give him) than the robot by itself. The driver knows "when to pull the trigger". The only advantage in autonomous mode is that you can victimize teams with nonfunctional autonomous modes (that just sit there). As the season - and the regionals themselves - carry on, there will be fewer and fewer of these machines.

3. The size of the goal relative to the ball means that even good shots will sometimes not end up scoring.

4. It is far easier to write an evasion program than to write a scoring program.

5. The irregularities of the orbit balls makes consistent shooting a difficult proposition. With poof balls, robots could hit the same square inch of target every time. With orbit balls (many of which will be broken), there's a lot more randomness.

That said, I am 100% sure that some teams will score in autonomous mode, and will do it well. But the plurality of teams responding to this poll, I fear, will discover the issues above.